Kathy Masters never expected to journey to the stars until she was selected by the prestigious Galactic Geographic Society to photograph and get videos of the flora and fauna of a newly discovered class M planet before colonization begins. Filled with hope and enthusiasm, she boards the SS America for the trip to Beta 3 Epsilon to begin her new project. On the way, she is abducted and brought aboard the privateer Rapier, beginning her nine-year sojourn among the colonies of mankind. Going from captive to slave to induction into the infamous brotherhood, Kathy finds herself being called on to raise the adopted daughter of the crew of the Rapier. Given the responsibility to raise their princess, Cindy, with the help of Lien Lan Yi, daughter of the house of Yi and princess of the imperial court, they travel among the stars, preying on merchant ships, dodging Chinese warships, fighting pirates, visiting strange worlds, and encountering fantastic creatures all under the watchful eyes of Commodore James Ulysses Black. Trying to raise a young girl among gunfights, sword fights, ship-to-ship battles, slave trades, deals, and some of the most-feared raiders in human space is no small challenge. The only question is, is Kathy up to the task?